Working Waterfront"The Working Waterfront" is a monthly newspaper published both online and in print format. It is a newspaper that provides information and stories about people who work along coastal Maine - whatever their occupation may be. If you are interested in a part of coastal Maine that some tourists don't see then this newspaper is for you. A small blurb taken from the newspapers website follows below. If you are interested in learning more about coastal Maine then visit the website of the "The Working Waterfront".

6/15/08: Maine Coastal Program Download CenterListed below is a catalog of all publications and documents that are available digitally. We're continually adding files, so please check back often

6/15/08: Mapping Maine’s Working WaterfrontBeginning in the summer of 2005, the Island Institute and its partners embarked on a community-based mapping project to quantify the working-waterfront resources for Maine’s 142 coastal towns. The goal of this research effort is to create a new tool in the form of a statewide Working Waterfront Access Map to facilitate dialogue between two historically divided coastal constituencies: the conservation community and the commercial fishing community. This report discusses the challenges and successes of this effort, the community participation process, project findings and how this research fits within the growing waterfront access protection toolkit in the state of Maine. Issues such as definingworking-waterfront access, setting protocols for public data access and the sustainability of mapping research are topics that this project addresses. It outlines a model methodology to explore the potential for this community-based mapping effort to remain current, and to learn whether it has applications in other working-waterfront states.

6/15/08: Tracking Commercial Fishing Access: A Survey of Harbormasters in 25 Maine Coastal CommunitiesTraditional water-dependent users are feeling the pinch. Historically, Maine’s coastline has served and supported a range of human needs from industrial and commercial to residential and recreational activities, from bulk cargo and fishing to houses and parks. Commercial fishing and recreational traffic are all vying for increasingly expensive waterfront parcels. Basic questions about who can afford to live and work along Maine’s coast are being raised.In 2002 the Maine State Planning Office issued the first baseline survey of the status of Maine’s working waterfront. Using a sample of 25 coastal communities, the study revealed that:

6/15/08: HARBOR MANAGEMENT: A Legal Guide for Harbormasters and Coastal OfficialsThis handbook is a revised version of the Guide for Harbor Management, Bulletin 648 (University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service), written by William Prosser. Changes in the law governing harbormasters’ responsibilities have necessitated updating the original guide, which has become a valued reference among Maine’s harbormasters.The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service provides educational and organizational assistance to harbormasters. The Maine Harbor Masters Association, organized in 1986 with Extension’s help, provides an opportunity for harbormasters to discuss common concerns and exchange ideas. No longer do harbormasters in some 143 coastal, island and tidal communities need to be isolated. Harbor Management: A Legal Guide for Harbormasters and Coastal Officials is designed to be a ready reference for newly appointed or experienced harbormasters.

6/15/08: Gulf of Maine Council Knowledgebase SearchThe Gulf of Maine KnowledgeBase provides easy access to information about the Gulf of Maine and its watershed in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. The KnowledgeBase is a directory of technical reports, journal articles, fact sheets, maps, Web sites, and other information sources for science, policy, education, and management.

8/30/06 Marine Law Institute Home PageThe Marine Law Institute is the research and public service component of the Ocean and Coastal Law Program and is the only law school-affiliated marine policy research program in the Northeast. MLI has dedicated its program of legal and policy research to the analysis of ocean and coastal resource issues for the express purpose of improving management practices and public understanding.

12/26/04 York Wanted HarbormasterBoth the harbormaster and the assistant harbormaster are required to be certified police officers, giving them the authority they need to enforce the laws pertaining to the use of the waterways. Harbormaster and assistant part-timeWant 2 or 3 all part-time dealing with moorings, grants, dredging and navigation issues.

12/26/04 Penobscot Bay Watch:Municipal Involvement Proposal for aquacultureHarbormasters in many towns are now being asked to plan the future of their waters. The responsibilities of the modern Harbormaster have, in the last few years, expanded far beyond the traditional duties. The recent resignation of the Rockland Harbormaster illustrates the effects of these growing expectations. City Manager Tom Hall’s job description for the new Harbormaster includes overseeing two mooring fields, two boat launches, managing the commercial fish pier, and she or he is expected to be the staff expert on development projects in and around the harbor. All this in addition to being the point-man in negotiations for the new high-speed ferry that has been proposed, as well as developing docking space for the growing schooner fleet.

12/26/04 TremontFrom a Selectman's meeting1. Harbor Master JobThe Harbor Committee is in agreement that the Harbormaster job should remain a forty-hour per week position. Alden said it would depend on the money situation. A lot of discussion about having the Harbormaster be a contracted position. The Harbor Committee will have a meeting and goover the Harbormaster duties line by line, see what changes need to be made, then bring it back to the Selectmen. Every one agreed that the duties should be the contract so it needs to be gone over thoroughly. Steve motioned to allow the Harbor Committee to spend up to $500.00 for a stone and plaque for Frederick "Bubba" Butler, Scott Harper seconded, unanimous.

Coalition kicks off affordable coast campaignTough economic times are even harder on islands, where the cost of living is much higher than it is on the mainland.So on Feb. 10, the Maine Islands Coalition, the Working Waterfront Coalition, the Island Institute, the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition and several other organizations kicked off a campaign at the State House in Augusta to help create jobs, preserve working waterfront access and make the coast and islands more affordable. About 50 people, including islanders, fishermen and representatives of the groups, were at the event.

3/18/05 A Waterfront that Works - Bangornews.com StaffMaine's Legislature has taken an important first step in protecting what's left of the state's working waterfront from escalating property tax increases. The House and Senate unanimously approved a bill to tax waterfront land used for fishing and fishing-related boat building based on current use rather than the current basis of highest and best use. That is, a fish pier or oceanfront boat yard for fishing boats is now taxed as if it had already been replaced by a pricey condominium or

Land Trust Near $1 MillionGoallDonor response to two challenge grants has brought the Boothbay Region Land Trust nearer to successful completion of its $1 million capital campaign.The land trust will continue to provide working waterfront on the island for local lobstermen and will use the island for educational opportunities for school children and the general public.

4/16/04 Little River Lobstermen Lose Fight To Acquire Buying StationLittle River Lobstermen Lose Fight To Acquire Buying Station; Little River, East Boothbay, lobstermen who have been working to keep their area's lobster-buying station in the industry by purchasing it themselves rather than have it sold to private interests, said this week they have lost their battle, but won't give up their fight to help preserve Maine's working waterfront.

11/13/08: Working Waterfront MappingIn 2007, the Island Institute completed a two-year project working with 142 coastal communities to inventory and analyze Maine’s working waterfronts. Collaborating with municipal leaders, citizens, private-property owners, and fishermen, Island Institute staff mapped each coastal access point along the 5,300 mile coastline. This project represented the first time that Maine’s coast had been mapped with the explicit intention of identifying working waterfront as a land use.

7/19/06 Maine Dept. of Marine Resources 2006 Research PlanBay Management Pilot ProjectsThe Land and Waters Resource Council, with staffing by DMR and the State Planning Office, is directing a two-year study to explore and document potential new and innovative concepts for the management of Maine’s embayments to reduce conflicts by involving local stakeholders in decision making. Two pilot projects, one in Taunton Bay and the other in Muscongus Bay including the Medomak River estuary and the Georges River estuary, are exploring governance models for these bays. DMR is providing natural resource information and management tools for each project. Taunton Bay Resource Management PlanDMR personnel are developing a “science-based comprehensive resource management plan for Taunton Bay that addresses principal resource user groups in the context of sustaining ecological processes, functions, and values of Taunton Bay” as mandated by legislation passed in 2005. This plan will be based on existing maps and knowledge of the Taunton Bay estuary and new information gained from cooperative studies of mussel dragging with industry members.

7/19/06 Casco Bay PlanThe Casco Bay Estuary Project is a cooperative effort to protect and prevent the pollution of Casco Bay by involving concerned citizens and local, state, and federal governments.Casco Bay lies at the heart of Maine's most populated area. The health of its waters, wetlands, and wildlife depend in large part on the activities of the quarter million residents who live in its watershed.